This week, Hawksmoor takes over one of London's most impressive dining rooms, Francesco Mazzei returns, Noodle Inn brings its queues to Spitalfields, No Drama finds a permanent home and more...
Hawksmoor St Pancras
King's Cross - St Pancras, Euston Rd., London NW1 2AR
Hawksmoor is taking over the space that was once The Midland Grand, and one of the most striking dining rooms in North London. They've given it a Hawksmoor refresh (adding parquet flooring) and alongside the usual array of steaks are introducing some new dishes, including a roast beef dinner available all week long. The Martini Bar, in another stunning room, will be worth the trip alone.
Opening date: 22 November 2025
Noodle Inn
Spitalfields - 100 Middlesex St, London E1 7EZ
The first Noodle Inn was a huge sensation in Soho, with the restaurant quickly developing Soho's most extreme queues (which continue to this day). The Spitalfields outpost will be bigger than the original, all halal, and they'll be adding some new dishes to go alongside the existing noodle favourites. We bet there will be queues here too, though.
Opening date: 18 November 2025
Mezzogiorno
Whitehall - Whitehall Pl, London SW1A 2BD
Francesco Mazzei has taken over the restaurant at Corinthia London that used to be The Northall. He's turned it into a high-end Italian restaurant that focuses on Southern Italy, particularly taking its influences from Mazzei’s Calabrian heritage. Expect dishes like "Francesco's mum's aubergine parmigiana" and a "giant" tiramisu to finish. At the time of writing, we're still waiting to see just what they've done with the design of the place.
Opening date: 20 November 2025
Chelsea Grill
Chelsea - 300 King's Rd, London SW3 5UH
It burned brightly, but Fantomas in Chelsea only ended up lasting just over half a year before closing. The same group, who also run Wild, are replacing it with something that's a little more akin to their other restaurants. Now billed as a neighbourhood restaurant, the menu's main focus is on grilled meat and seafood with plenty of steak on the menu alongside whole turbot, seabass and more. In fairness, we can see this being a much bigger draw for the well-to-do Chelsea locals.
Opening date: 18 November 2025
The Bush Tavern
Shepherd's Bush - 15-19 Goldhawk Road, W12 8QQ
This Shepherd's Bush pub is being relaunched by the people behind The Hawk's Nest. However, it's the food that's the attraction for us as it's now the new home of No Drama burgers, who make some of the best burgers in town. Previously a little more out of the way in Acton (and more recently in a residency at The Parakeet), this will be a permanent home for No Drama, and we expect their burgers to be even more popular than ever.
Opening date: 20 November 2025
Nora
Canary Wharf - 7 West Lane, London E22 3A
Nora comes from a team of two brothers who, until now, were best known for being behind the Cafe Beam series of cafes. Here, they're opening their first restaurant, a modern Turkish affair with an ex-Barbary chef in charge of the kitchen. Expect dishes like lamb borek and adana köfte kebabs as well as huge sharing plates of ex-dairy beef rib. There's nothing else quite like this in Canary Wharf, so this has the potential to be a hit there.
Opening date: 17 November 2025
Plaza Khao Gaeng
Borough Yards - 18 Stoney St, London SE1 9AD
Recently, Luke Farrell may have been getting more attention for his Speedboat bar restaurants, but he originally kicked things off with Plaza Khao Gaeng in the Arcade food hall. This is the first properly standalone version of the restaurant, with the same concentration on dishes from Thailand’s southern provinces. The food is also known for being liberal with the heat and spices, so if you're after a bit of heating up as the weather gets cooler, this is where you need to head.
Opening date: 19 November 2025
Velvet Taco
City of London - 33 Broadgate, London EC2M 2QS
The latest taco restaurant to open in London comes from America, and it's the first time that Velvet Taco will be opening outside the USA. They're known for their tacos that steer away from the traditional takes, like fish ’n chips or spicy tikka chicken. They also have a weekly changing WTF special which, in the past has included a shepherd's pie taco. We'll have to see what craziness they have planned for London on that front.
Opening date: 20 November 2025
Harry's
Covent Garden - 11-12 Russell Street, London WC2B 5HZ
The latest of Richard Caring's Harry's empire is also their biggest yet, opening on the Covent Garden Piazza (taking over what used to be Tuttons). As with the previous openings, there's a 1950s Italian approach to the design, and an all-day Italian menu on offer.
Opening date: 18 November 2025
This week's events
17 November (Mayfair) - Join Clare Smyth for the Bocuse d’Or UK President’s Gala Dinner at Claridge's - a dinner featuring courses by the UK’s three Michelin-starred chefs Alain Roux (The Waterside Inn), Kim Ratcharoen (Restaurant Gordon Ramsay), Marco Zampese (Hélène Darroze at The Connaught), Jean-Philippe Blondet (Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester), Daniel Stucki (Sketch) and Simon Rogan (L’Enclume). Tickets are £785 per person or £7500 for a table of 10.
18 November (King's Cross) - Shake Shack is opening in King's Cross, and the first 100 people in line will get a free ShackBurger or Shroom Burger to celebrate.
18 November (St John’s Wood) - Panzer’s Deli hosts post-harvest celebration with Puglian olive oil producer Trulli Ulivi with a guided tasting of their new-season oil, followed by a menu from Kit Delamain of Circus Pizza, featuring Margherita pizza, lemon and olive oil chicken, and sorbet. Tickets are £45pp.
20 November (Fleet St) - Le Cordon Bleu CORD is hosting an exclusive hands-on culinary and sherry-pairing masterclass. The class is £95 + service charge and inc
22 November (Muswell Hill) - Astrid Bakery is hosting pizza pop-ups with pizza maestro Matteo di Russo and his Roman-style pizza al taglio. They'll be backed up by Astrid's wines by the glass, single-origin filter coffee, croissant tiramisu and brown sugar soft serve ice cream. (12-4pm each day).
Here's what opened last week:
The Marlborough (Mayfair) - Crisp Pizza arrived in Mayfair with a little assistance from The Devonshire team.
Khao Bird (Soho) - Previously a Borough Market residency, this is the Thai restaurant's permanent home.
Trogolo (Notting Hill) - The Petersham Nurseries team opened in Notting Hill with a Florentine restaurant.
Khao-Sō-i (Fitzrovia) - A huge hit in Thailand, this is the permanent London home for the restaurant.
Firestarter (City of London) - A London pub group opens a live-fire restaurant.
Humble Grape (City of London) - The latest of their wine bars is in a City of London crypt.
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